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Signe Vikkelsø

Professor

Subjects
Organisation Centralisation Decentralisation Change management Technology Sociology History

Primary research areas

Form­al or­gan­iz­a­tion
The role of form­al or­gan­iz­a­tion in busi­ness, pub­lic ad­min­is­tra­tion, and so­ci­ety. My re­search fo­cuses on identi­fy­ing the do­mains and prin­ciples of ef­fect­ive form­al­iz­a­tion, as well as the con­sequences of in­ad­equate form­al­iz­a­tion. This in­cludes em­pir­ic­al cases from health­care, in­nov­a­tion part­ner­ships, and bank­ing.
His­tory of or­gan­iz­a­tion the­ory
The his­tory of or­gan­iz­a­tion the­ory and its re­la­tion­ship with oth­er dis­cip­lines such as so­ci­ology, en­gin­eer­ing, and eco­nom­ics. How have this changed the con­cep­tu­al rep­er­toire and self-un­der­stand­ing of or­gan­iz­a­tion schol­ars and prac­ti­tion­ers?
Sci­ence, tech­no­logy and or­gan­iz­a­tion
The en­tan­gle­ment of sci­ence, tech­no­logy, and or­gan­iz­a­tion such as the or­gan­iz­a­tion­al con­sequences of new tech­no­logy and the or­gan­iz­a­tion of sci­ence and in­nov­a­tion.
Or­gan­iz­a­tion­al tools and prin­ciples
The tool­box of prac­tic­al or­gan­iz­a­tion and how it af­fects the struc­ture and func­tion­ing of or­gan­iz­a­tions. Cur­rently, I study or­gan­iz­a­tion­al charts and dia­grams as tools for de­pict­ing, ac­count­ing for, and think­ing about or­gan­iz­a­tion and man­age­ment.

I study what makes good or­gan­iz­a­tion

I am Professor of Science, Technology, and Organization, with a background in social psychology from the University of Copenhagen and a PhD in organization and management studies from Copenhagen Business School.

My research explores topics at the intersection of organization theory, science and technology studies, and the sociology of work. This includes an interest in formal organization, organizational tools and principles, and the history of organization and management theory: What characterizes good organization, and what roles do organizational tools, technologies, and theories play? Empirically, I have focused on healthcare, manufacturing industries, innovation partnerships, and banking using qualitative methods such as ethnography, interviews, and archival research.

I have served as a research leader or core member of four externally funded collaborative research projects and have supervised 18 PhD students. I have extensive leadership experience, having served seven years as Head of Department and currently serving as Head of Studies for Master Programs in Organization, Strategy, Leadership and People. I am also member of the Social Science Research Council under Independent Research Fund Denmark.

Recent research projects

“See­ing Or­gan­iz­a­tion: The So­cio-Ma­ter­i­al His­tory of the Or­gan­iz­a­tion­al Chart”

The pro­ject ad­dresses the role of the or­gan­iz­a­tion­al chart in so­ci­ety and ex­plores the chart’s en­tan­gle­ment with chan­ging modes of rep­res­ent­a­tion­al prac­tices, shifts in or­gan­iz­a­tion and man­age­ment the­ory, and trans­form­a­tions in work, pro­duc­tion, cap­it­al, and reg­u­la­tion.

“Form­al Or­gan­iz­a­tion – Past, Present, and Fu­ture”

The pro­ject ad­dresses form­al or­gan­iz­a­tion as a con­tested top­ic in or­gan­iz­a­tion and man­age­ment the­ory, or­gan­iz­a­tion­al so­ci­ology, and psy­cho­logy and dis­cusses the im­plic­a­tions of this dis­agree­ment.

Outside activities

CBS Executive – Teaching the “Research Management Course” (7 full days) , 2025–present